Frequently Asked Questions

Before applying for a visa you must make sure that your passport is valid:

• Check the expiration date on your passport: For a short stay visa (less than 90 days), the expiration date must be 3 months after the date of your return from the Schengen area; For a renewal of circulation visa, the expiration date must be 15 months after the day you apply for a visa; For a regular long stay visa (more than 90 days), the expiration date must be 15 months after the day you plan to leave the your country of origin.
• Make sure your passport has two or more completely blank and unmarked visa pages;
• Make sure your passport has not been altered (example: water or pen mark): Check if the original laminated film (the transparent safety film that covers the passport photo) has been tampered with. If this is the case, you must ask a passport-issuing authority to re-tamper proof your passport; Make sure no pages or surfaces have been laminated (as this will invalidate your passport); Check for scratching or alteration.
• If your passport was issued over 10 years ago, even if it is still valid at the time you submit your visa application, you must apply for a new passport from domestic authorities or the Embassy or Consulate of your country of origin, before being able to apply for a visa.
• Make sure that the passport has been signed by the holder before applying for the visa.

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Visa applications for France are now received by TLScontact, except for some categories that are still received by the Consulate General of France in Indonesia directly. 

• You must submit your visa application in the country where you legally reside.
• If you intend to visit only one Schengen country, you must apply at the Embassy or Consulate of this country.
• If you intend to visit several Schengen countries, you must apply for a visa at the Embassy or Consulate of the country of the main destination (example: the country where you stay the longest, the country where you will have a business trip instead of the country that you will visit for tourism purposes).
• If you intend to visit several Schengen countries but do not have a main destination (i.e. the duration of your stay is the same in different countries), you should apply for a visa at the Embassy or Consulate of the country that is your first point of entry.

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You may only submit your visa application within 6 months before your date of departure. We recommend that you apply between 90 days and at least 20 working days before the date you intend to travel.

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Visa processing times are outside TLScontact’s control, and can vary according to several factors, such as the visa type and the time of year you apply. Certain visa types require special checks, which may extend the processing time.

We recommend that you submit your visa application as soon as you can, to allow enough time for processing before you travel. For more details please refer to the official guidance on the France Visas website.

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To apply for a visa, you should find more details on our procedure page.

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Personal appearance is mandatory for all visa applicants, unless you are exempted from biometric data capturing.

Exemptions:

• Children under 12 years of age, finger scans are not required;
• Applicants who have given their fingerprint for a previous Schengen visa delivered within 59 months.

Personal appearance is mandatory for all long stay and overseas French territories (DROM / CTOM) visa applicants even if they have a previous Schengen visa delivered within 59 months.

Click here to download the format for the authorization letter demanded by the Embassy for all visa applications submissions, done in your name, by a third party.

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In general, everyone is required to enroll biometric information (10 fingerprint and digital photo); only applicants who are within the following categories will be exempted:

• Children under the age of 12.
• Applicants who are physically unable to submit their fingerprints for scan (hand/finger/arm amputated). However, if it is possible to scan at least one fingertip, then applicants have to go through the biometric step. In the case of a temporary inability to provide the fingerprints (plaster, bandage, etc.), the applicant still has to come in person and have the most possible fingerprints scanned. As only a part of the fingerprints has been collected, the applicant will have to come in person to allow the fingerprints scan again the next time applying for a visa.
• Applicants who have given their fingerprints for the issuance of a Schengen visa delivered within the past 59 months.

Applicants need to provide a photocopy of this visa sticker as a proof. However, the local consular authority may request you to submit the biometric data again.

To know more about the Visa information system (VIS), please visit the following link.

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You can find more detail information on how to take an appointment on TLScontact website here.

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Visa application forms can be found on France-Visas website.

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In order to apply for a French Spouse visa, it is mandatory for applicants to provide the following documents:

Complete copy of the French marriage certificate issued in the last 2 months (if the marriage was celebrated in France) or copy of the transcript of the marriage certificate in the consular civil registries issued in the last 2 months (if it was celebrated outside of France).

Your French family book (Livret de famille)

In order to obtain the first document, you will need to submit a request through the service-public.fr website on the following link:

https://www.service-public.fr/particuliers/vosdroits/F1432

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The Embassy may request you to provide additional documents or information, according to your personal situation, even after you have submitted your application at TLScontact centre. Please note that any additional document, which is not required in the basic list according to your type of visa, must also be accompanied with a certified translation into either English or French if it is in any other language.

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The two photographs required for any visa application must be:

• Two identical photos;
• Color photo on a white background;
• Format 3.5 cm x 4.5 cm;
• Taken from the front - without obstruction;
• Recent (less than 6 months old).

For more information, please visit the link here. 

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Due to a regulation of the European Union (Decision 2004/17/CE of December 22nd 2003), there is a requirement to hold travel insurance, which is a compulsory document.

The travel insurance should be*:

• Valid throughout the territory of the Member States of the Schengen area if you apply for short stay visa**;
• Valid for France if it is required in the document list and you apply for long stay visa;
• Valid for the French Overseas Territories according to your itinerary.

Your travel insurance must be valid with a minimum cover of EUR 30,000.00 in order to face any expenses that may arise in connection with your repatriation for medical reasons, urgent medical attention or emergency hospital treatment. The travel insurance should fully cover the period of your stay in the Schengen Area (or French overseas territories), please see list of approved insurance companies.

*A coverage “Worldwide” or “International” will be compliant in any situation (Short stay, Long stay, French overseas territories).

**For short stay the coverage area must encompass the totality of the Schengen area. An insurance mentioning only one destination country (e.g “France”) won’t be regarded as valid by the visa section.

Special insurance requirement for the long stay visa types:

• Visitor;
• Study under 18 years old;
• Ascendant of a French citizen or ascendant of a French citizen spouse (dependent & non-dependent).

Especially for the visa types mentioned above, the medical insurance required for your visa application is a “First Euro/Dollar” medical insurance for expatriates that covers the planned duration of stay. The insurance has to cover France or a larger zone (Europe, International etc...).

Travel Insurance that is 100% compliant with the Schengen requirements is mandatory for your visa application. Learn more.

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Please check passport collection opening hours on Address page.

Collection in person

When your passport is ready to be collected, you will be notified online on your personal account page, by e-mail and by SMS notification, informing you to come to the TLScontact center with:

• Your application checklist;
• Your original photographic ID;
• Copy of your photographic ID.

Collection by representative

Representative may retrieve your passport on your behalf with the documents listed below:

• Your Application Checklist;
• Copy of Your Photographic ID;
• Representative’s Original Photographic ID;
• Copy of Representative’s Photographic ID;
• Official letter of authorization provided by the French Embassy (fully filled, signed and the same one as verified by TLScontact) Click here to download the template;

IMPORTANT: All documents mentioned above are mandatory for passport collection

If you would like to change the third party for collecting your passport, you will need to fill the same authorization letter with the information of the new representative and the letter has to be approved by TLScontact in advance. If the representative change was not notified and verified by TLScontact, TLScontact reserves the right to not allow the non-approved representative to collect the passport

Return by courier

TLScontact offers an Express Courier Return service, allowing you to receive your passport directly at your home or your office. To obtain this service please contact our call center.

If you choose to cancel this service after your application has been submitted, Express Courier Return fee cannot be refunded.

Recipient address and information for this service must be filled in by the applicant or representative during application submission appointment. Once the application has been submitted, no changes can be made to the recipient address and information. We therefore kindly ask you to confirm recipient address and information before the application submission.

Please note that passports that have not been collected from the TLScontact center after a duration of 3 months after it has been returned by the French Embassy to the TLScontact center will be given back to the French consulary authorities.

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TLScontact supports the latest versions of these browsers:

• Chrome (Win 10 and Android for Mobile / Tablet);
• Edge (Win 10);
• Firefox (Win 7);
• Safari (OS X and iOS for Mobile / Tablet).

Make sure your browser is up to date and get into the habit of installing software updates whenever they are available.

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Internet Explorer (IE) 11 was released in 2013, and no feature updates released by Microsoft in years, which puts this browser behind others in terms of its ability to support new technologies. While Microsoft will continue to provide support for users of IE 11 for a few more years, the new default browser is Microsoft Edge.

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